PRAYERS FOR PRIESTS

MORNING OFFERING PRAYER FOR PRIESTS:

Most merciful Father, I offer Thee the prayers, works, joys, and sufferings of this day by placing them in the holy and venerable hands of Jesus, the Eternal High Priest, and by saying, as He did upon entering the world, “Behold, I come to do Thy will” (Hebrews 10:9). For the sake of all His priests, and in particular for the priests entrusted to my intercession, (mention the names) I entreat Thy beloved Son to unite my offering to the Sacrifice of the Cross, renewed upon the altars of Thy Church from the rising of the sun to its setting (Malachi 1:11).

 Holy Father, look upon these men chosen by Thy Son to show forth His death until He comes (1 Cor 11:26); keep them from the Evil One (John 17:15) and sanctify them in the truth (John 17:17). Bind them by a most tender love to the Virgin Mary their Mother, that by her intercession, they may be overshadowed by the power of the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:35) in every act of their sacred ministry; thus may their priesthood reveal the Face of Jesus and the merciful love of His Heart, for the fruitfulness of His Spouse, the Church and the praise of Thy glory. Amen

THURDAYS ACT OF ADORATION

from Fr. Mark Kirby’s Prayers for Priests 

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Lord Jesus Christ, moved by the Holy Spirit, and united to the Maternal Heart of Thy Most Holy Mother, I offer Thee this Thursday, and every Thursday for the rest of my life, in thanksgiving for the Sacrament of Thy Most Holy Body and Blood, in adoration, in reparation, and in humble supplication for all the priests of Thy Church, especially for those who do not adore Thee, for those who are wounded in their souls, and for those who are exposed to the attacks of the powers of darkness. For them and in their place, allow me to abide before Thy Eucharistic Face. In their name, let me draw near to Thy open Heart, ever-flowing with the Blood and the Water that purify, heal, and sanctify all souls, but, first of all, those of Thy priests.  Eternal High Priest, make me an entirely Eucharistic soul, according to the desires of Thy Sacred Heart and the designs of Thy merciful goodness upon my life. I desire only to love Thee more each day, and to be, by Thy grace, the faithful adorer of Thy Eucharistic Face and the consoling friend of Thy Sacred Heart hidden in the tabernacles of the world, where it beats, wounded by love, forgotten, forsaken, and waiting for the adoration and for the love of even one priest. AMEN. 

OR

Act of Adoration for Priests 
from Fr. Mark Kirby’s Prayers for Priests 

Lord Jesus Christ, Priest and Victim, behold, I kneel before Thy Eucharistic Face
on behalf of all Thy priests, and especially those priests of Thine, who, at this moment, are most in need of Thy grace. For them and in their place, allow me to remain, adoring and full of confidence, close to Thy Open Heart, hidden in this, the Sacrament of Thy Love.

Through the Maternal and Immaculate Heart of Mary, our Advocate and the Mediatrix of All Graces, pour forth upon all the priests of Thy Church that torrent of mercy that ever flows from Thy pierced Side: to purify and heal them, to refresh and sanctify them, and, at the hour of their death, to make them worthy of joining Thee before the Father, in the heavenly sanctuary beyond the veil, where Thou art always living to make intercession for us.  Amen.

Eucharistic Face of Jesus, sanctify Thy priests!

PRAYER TO OUR LADY OF THE TEARS FOR PRIESTS

O Blessed Lady of the Tears; we entrust and consecrate the priesthood to your Immaculate Heart! During this time of trial and suffering, we pray that you renew the priesthood by making priests holy in imitation of the Heart of the Good Shepherd. We pray in reparation for the sins of the priesthood and we pray for all victims of their sins. Grant, O Lady of the Tears, an outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the priests that they may be authentic witnesses of your Son Jesus Christ  Our Lord. May we wipe away your tears by comforting your Immaculate Heart, by praying the rosary and adoring the Heart of Jesus your Son in the Most Holy Eucharist present in every Catholic Church in the world.

Give all priests and seminarians a deep love and devotion to Jesus in the Eucharist and to you, their loving Mother. Grant that every

priest and seminarian will daily spend one hour with Jesus in the Eucharist and daily pray your most holy rosary! Grant all priests and seminarians the gift of purity, the gift of chastity, and the gift of the divine love of your Son. May they proclaim the truth without fear, with love, and with courage! We ask all our prayers through the Tears which you shed at the foot of the Cross of Jesus Christ your Son who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Amen!

PRAYER TO ST. JOSEPH FOR PRIESTS:

O Illustrious Patriarch St. Joseph, who carried the Infant Jesus in thy blessed arms and who, during the space of thirty years, lived in the most intimate familiarity with Him, take under thy powerful protection those whom He has clothed with His authority and honored with the dignity of His Priesthood, whom He has charged to continue His mission, to preach His Gospel, and to dispense everywhere His graces and blessings. Sustain them in their fatigues and labors; console them in their pains; fortify them in their combats; but above all, keep far from them all the evils of sin.

Obtain for them the humility of St. John the Baptist, the faith of St. Peter, the zeal and charity of St. Paul, the purity of St. John and the spirit of prayer and recollection of which thou, my dear Saint, art the model, so that, after having been on earth the faithful dispensers of the Mysteries of thy foster Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, they may in Heaven receive the recompense promised to pastors according to the Heart of God. Amen.

ST. THERESE OF THE CHILD JESUS’ PRAYER FOR PRIESTS

O Jesus, Eternal Priest, keep Thy priests within the shelter of Thy Sacred Heart, where none may touch them.

Keep unstained their anointed hands, which daily touch Thy Sacred Body.

Keep unsullied their lips, daily purpled with Thy Precious Blood.

Keep pure and unworldly their hearts, sealed with the sublime mark of the priesthood.

Let Thy Holy Love surround them and shield them from the world’s contagion. Bless their labors with abundant fruits, and may the souls to whom they minister be their joy and consolation here, and in heaven their beautiful and everlasting crown.

O Mary, Queen of the Clergy, pray for us; obtain for us many holy priests. Amen.

PRAYER FOR PRIESTS TO BE VICTIMS

 O my God, pour out in abundance Thy spirit of sacrifice upon Thy priests. It is both their glory and their duty to become victims, to be burnt up for souls, to live without ordinary joys, to be often the objects of distrust, injustice, and persecution. The words they say every day at the altar, “This is my Body, this is my Blood,” grant them to apply to themselves: “I am no longer myself, I am Jesus, Jesus crucified. I am, like the bread and wine, a substance no longer itself, but by consecration another.”

O my God, I burn with desire for the sanctification of Thy priests. I wish all the priestly hands which touch Thee were hands whose touch is gentle and pleasing to Thee, that all the mouths uttering such sublime words at the altar should never descend to speaking trivialities. Let priests in all their person stay at the level of their lofty functions, let every man find them simple and great, like the Holy Eucharist, accessible to all yet above the rest of men. O my God, grant them to carry with them from the Mass of today, a thirst for the Mass of tomorrow, and grant them, laden themselves with gifts, to share these abundantly with their fellow men. Amen. (Father William Doyle, S.J.)

ST. FAUSTINA’S PRAYER FOR HOLY CHURCH AND FOR PRIESTS:

O my Jesus, I beg You on behalf of the whole Church: Grant it love and the light of Your Spirit and give power to the words of priests so that hardened hearts might be brought to repentance and return to You, O Lord.

Lord, give us holy priests; You Yourself maintain them in holiness. O Divine and Great High Priest, may the power of Your mercy accompany them everywhere and protect them from the devil’s traps and snares which are continually being set for the souls of priests.

May the power of Your mercy, O Lord, shatter and bring to naught all that might tarnish the sanctity of priests, for You can do all things. I ask You, Jesus, for a special blessing and for light for the priests before whom I will make my confessions throughout my lifetime. Amen.

PRAYER TO SAINT JOHN MARY VIANNEY FOR PARISH PRIESTS

Dear Saint John Vianney, your childhood dream was to be a priest, to win souls for God. You endured years of toil and humiliation to attain the priesthood.  You became a priest truly after God’s own Heart, outstanding in humility and poverty, prayer and mortification. You were totally devoted to the service of God’s people. The Church has exalted you as model and Patron Saint of all Parish Priests, trusting that your example and prayers will help them to live up to the high dignity of their vocation to be faithful servants of God’s people, to be perfect imitators of Christ the Savior Who came not to be served but to serve, to give His Life as a ransom for many.

Pray that God may give to His Church today many more priests after His own Heart. Pray for all the priests under your patronage that they may be worthy representatives of Christ the Good Shepherd.  May  they  wholeheartedly  devote  themselves  to  prayer and penance; be examples of humility and  poverty;  shining  models  of  holiness; tireless and powerful preachers of the Word of  God;  zealous  dispensers  of  God’s Grace in the sacraments. May their loving devotion to Jesus in the Eucharist and to Mary His Mother be the Twin Fountains of fruitfulness for their ministry. Amen.

PRAYER FOR PRIESTS

O, Jesus, Eternal High Priest, accept my fervent prayers for Father (name)…, your servant. I lift up this priest in prayer to you, and intercede for the Holy Catholic Priesthood. Take my offering to use as you will for one who is in need of prayer.

Dear Jesus, bless each priest with zeal for your Word. Inspire him with a love of the Eucharist. Instill in him humility; give him courage to lead his flock, and protect him always from the temptations and snares of the devil. O, Heavenly Father, comfort him if he has grown discouraged. Inflame his heart with love if he has grown tepid. If there is a priest in purgatory, bring him into Eternal Life with my heartfelt supplication. May your Sacred Heart renew, strengthen and dwell in each priest so that he may truly be a new creation in your image. Gracious Mother Mary, take this priest into your Immaculate Heart and intercede for your chosen son. Amen.

SHORT LITANY FOR PRIESTS

-Jesus, meek and humble of Heart, give all priests Thy spirit of humility.

-Jesus, poor and worn out for souls, give all priests Thy spirit of zeal.

-Jesus, full of patience and mercy for sinners, give all priests Thy spirit of compassion.

-Jesus, Victim for the sins of the world, give all priests Thy spirit of sacrifice.

-Jesus, lover of the little and the poor, give all priests Thy spirit of charity.

Mary, Queen of the Clergy, pray for us; obtain for us numerous and holy priests and religious. Amen.

Pray for them during Mass. Whenever we attend Mass, it is a good time to pray for that priest and ask God to bless them and make them holy.